10 new London wine bars you don't want to miss

Just three minutes’ walk from Angel tube station, SANE Sake and Wine Bar is nestled in a chic Oriental corner of boutique shops selling sake, Japanese antiques and crafts.

The ground floor has a casual dining feel, with outdoor seating, a comfy sofa area and a retail corner – 70% of the bottles are exclusive, hand-picked by owner and importer Maxime Maiano, whose CV includes drinks-list development for Michelin-starred restaurants. Downstairs is a vibey, fine-dining lounge, with a tasting room hidden at the back.

The drinks offering covers classic, region-oriented wines, alongside sake and soju, but there is plenty beyond the familiar – especially on the sake front: Mukai Shuzo’s pinkish Ine Mankai Junmai Genshu and Tamagawa’s 1712-recipe-inspired Junmai sake, ‘Time Machine’, would be alluring tries for those curious about the category.

But what truly sets SANE apart is the pairing experience. The one-pager Japanese-inspired Mediterranean food menu encompasses tasty nibbles such as crab rillette (£6.50), cheeses, charcuterie and salads, plus flatbreads with delicious Asian-fusion spreads (£7) if you are up for a light bite.

The top tip from Maxime is to focus on the aromas when you pair wine, and on texture when you pair sake. The best deal for a small social gathering would be the ‘Sake or Wine Flight’ – three taster glasses of either for £15, with an additional three-cheese sharing set for £10.

Don’t miss: salmon aburi (seared sashimi, £10) from the mains, served with sliced orange and salad, paired with Dewasakura’s crisp, floral Omachi Junmai Ginjo.

by Sylvia Wu

Located in West London’s fashionable Portobello Road area, wine and vinyl bar Sova (‘owl’ in many Slavic languages) is an exciting and original addition to the area.

From the team behind Zima in Soho, Sova is buzzing on summer evenings, the young crowd spilling out onto its small street-side terrace.

Vinyl-led soundtracks and guest DJs set the mood for an eclectic range of low-intervention and skin-contact wines from Eastern and Central Europe, matched with Slavic-inspired small plates and mains.

This is a place for wine adventurers. You can still go down the traditional route if you want (Champagne, Pinot Grigio, red Burgundy etc), but why would you when the majority of the wine list is given over to a wealth of exciting and unfamiliar options – and enthusiastic staff are on hand to guide you through it?

From the bubbles section alone, you can plump for a Slovakian pet-nat, a Slovenian pet-nat rosé or a Ukrainian blanc de blancs.

Don’t miss: the amazing sourdough bread with seaweed butter, the Ukrainian traditional-method fizz, and the rich, generous Graševina white from Vinčić estate in Fruška Gora, Serbia.

If anything could tempt me north of the river regularly, it’s this hospitable neighbourhood wine bar and restaurant, in converted horse stables on Lonsdale Road mews in west London.

A collaboration between award-winning sommelier Alexandra Price and Australian restaurateur Elliott Milne, this is a destination worth crossing town for, every detail carefully and lovingly thought out.

It’s been conceived as a creative, cultural and community hub, with the warm and inviting design modelled on a mid-century modern artist’s living room, with a touch of spaghetti western.

An evolving cultural programme will include DJs, live music, poetry, chess nights and more, and there’s already a relaxed, hip atmosphere – with tables spilling out into the street outside.

The ambitious, 200-bin wine list is divided into four sections – author, actor, architect and direcor – and feels a little like hard work (or read it in advance!), but contains a treasure trove of exciting pours, with a focus on wines that prioritise careful farming practices, respect for the land and expression of terroir.

The food menu, meanwhile, overseen by head chef Alistair Walling (ex Noble Rot Mayfair) shows French and Italian influences and sees seasonal ingredients (including fresh pasta) simply cooked and beautifully presented.

The whole thing – the location, the decor, the food, wine and the community philosophy – just works. I just wish it were closer to my part of London!

Don’t miss: the Bolly-esque Thierry Fournier Champagne Reserve NV if it’s on by the glass, the bluefin tuna crostini, and the artichoke all Giudia with pecorino and honey

The tagline for this new wine bar, a stroll from Balham station, is ‘You’re not out, you’re just over’. And that’s the atmosphere co-owner Jenny Smith wanted to convey: popping by a mate’s place for a catch up over a few glasses of wine and some snacks in their cosy front room.

There are eight Parisian-style couples tables outside under the stripey awning for people watching, and about 50 more seats inside, in convivial clusters, surrounded by walls of photos – including Charley herself, Jenny’s young daughter.

As befits a stage two Master of Wine candidate and former buyer at Oddbins, the 50-strong wine list – half of which are available by the glass – is a hit-list of favourites from Jenny and the team: mainly boutique producers, under-the-radar regions and new discoveries.

Wines are grouped by style (ie: Fuller Complex Whites and Light Juicy Reds) and a back page of more exclusive monthly Cellar Picks (POA) will grow over time.

Mediterranean-accented sharing plates from a former Barrafina chef are a step above usual wine bar fare (think grilled octopus, baba ghanoush and heirloom tomato salad) and there’s live music in the evenings.

Don’t miss: the Sylvain Debord, Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2022 (great value at £13.50/glass) or Lena Macht, Chardonnay Blanc de Blanc NV from Germany’s Mosel (a classy splurge for £62/bottle)

by Tina Gellie

The historic Menier Chocolate Factory building on Southwark Street, a stone’s throw from Borough Market and London Bridge Station, is architecturally striking.

And now there’s another reason to visit the 19th-century, Gothic-style building – the Lady of the Grapes modern French bistro on the ground floor, and speakeasy-style wine bar Forbidden Fruit downstairs.

Parisian restaurateur and wine expert Carole Byron has replicated the successful formula she pioneered at her original Covent Garden venue, but on a larger scale, with an eclectic and intriguing wine list that celebrates female-led producers of organic, biodynamic and natural wines.

The ground-floor bistro is light and airy, with high ceilings, exposed brickwork and a pared-back decor. An open kitchen produces immaculate French cuisine, including rotating classics such as oeufs en meurette, Comté cheese soufflé, pissaladière, and canard aux olives.

Meanwhile, the Forbidden Fruit basement wine bar has a more intimate, late-night atmosphere, and a menu of bar snacks, toasties (3 cheese toastie with brie, raclette and comté for £10 has got to be a winner), cheese and charcuterie.

Don’t miss: in the restaurant, the gougères with Epoisses cream, and Drémont-Marroy’s Le Triau non-vintage Champagne by the glass.

A step away from the busy shopping meccas of Oxford Street and Regent Street, in Kingly Court, is Bar ALTA. Inspired by the pintxos culture of northern Spain, Bar ALTA has opened to offer a more casual-dining alternative to ALTA Restaurant, upstairs, with seating extending to an outdoor terrace.

The vibe is urban, slightly cavernous, all steel and wood, with an open kitchen where the ALTA head chef Robbie Jameson oversees a short, tapas-style menu divided into sections for breads, sharing bites, fried tapas and skewers (plus churros or cheesecake to finish).

These can be served in a haphazard order, so ask if you want your breads first! The most-ordered skewer, the waiter tells us, is the lion’s mane, shiitake, egg yolk & chives, but the star skewer for me is the plump wild Atlantic prawn, Iberico fat & garlic.

The drinks list is far longer than the food menu, and don’t skip straight to wine as Bar ALTA takes its spritzes, sangrias, vermouths and cocktails seriously.

There’s also a selection of craft beer, cider and perry on offer, and a list of five inventive non-alcoholic cocktails under the Nada section.

The wine offering is not entirely Spanish, and with some dispensed by tap (indicated on the list).

It includes classic styles alongside more offbeat choices, including an orange wine that marries Malvasia and Moscatel, a white field blend from Veneto and a txakoli rosado. Admirably, all are available by 125ml glass and 500ml carafe.

Don’t miss: the vermouths, the mixed house pickles, and the Iberico & smoked cheddar croquettes.

There’s no stopping Vagabond, which has opened five new venues in under a year, including new wine bars in Soho and Canary Wharf over the summer.

Vagabond Soho, in Ganton Street, is its largest site yet, set over two levels and including an outdoor seating area, but mostly underground where you could almost get lost wandering around the numerous drinking areas in various nooks and crannies.

The smaller, but still spacious Canary Wharf location is also set over two floors, and with a waterfront terrace.

At both venues Vagabond’s emblematic self-pour Enomatic machines take pride of place, delivering 120+ wines, in different-sized pours.

Looking beyond London, Vagabond is set to open a new venue in Brighton this autumn.

Don’t miss: sampling the English wines made at Vagabond’s urban winery in Canada Water

Next to Deptford station, under the railway arches of the newly established social hub Deptford Market, Cantina Boccone (‘the tavern for a bite’) is what happens when Italy meets Portugal.

Founders and partners in life Fabio Forin and Gonçalo Albuquerque, who live nearby, each brought their own expertise to the small kitchen-slash-wine store within the arch – Fabio from wine retail at Borough Market, Gonçalo from hospitality – curating a menu of recipes inspired by their travels and local cuisines, alongside an ever-changing wine list sourced from lesser-known regions and producers in Italy and Portugal.

Fabio’s time at Borough Market and his love of food show in his knack for seeking out lesser-known delicacies and interesting combinations, such as Coppa di Zibello fennel salami and lardo di Cinta Senese (cured pork fat) on sourdough bruschette.

Fresh buffalo mozzarella, served with balsamic-seasoned grilled aubergines, is only available from Friday to Sunday.

The wine list is simple and unintimidating, offering just a choice between house wines (red, white, rosé and orange, by the glass at £7.50 or carafe at £26) and rotating specials at £10-£12 a glass.

Rest assured that even the house wines, hand-picked by Gonçalo, are full of pleasant surprises.

Try the juicy, dark-pink field blend Uivo Renegado from Folias de Baco, and the savoury, fresh Cinque Terre from Possa, a hyper-niche natural wine aged in amphora.

Advance booking is highly recommended for weekend dinners, but the team is also happy to accommodate walk-ins.

Don’t miss: the signature Boccone board & rustic bread, featuring four types of meat and three cheeses (£26 for two), and the fried olives (£7) to pair with Quinta da Lapa’s orange wine Fernão Pirão. Opt for the popular seasonal special, wild boar pasta (£17/£26), while it lasts.

by Sylvia Wu

Husband-and-wife chef duo Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer have opened a new, wine-led branch of Honey & Co on the Great Portland Street site on which their Middle Eastern restaurant Honey & Smoke once stood.

A deli by day, the venue morphs into a restaurant and wine bar by night, where flavour-packed dishes are paired with wines sourced by Keeling Andrew of Noble Rot.

The front section, housing the deli counter and wine shop, is light and airy, with floor to ceiling windows. At the back, the restaurant area features wooden tables, and a warm burgundy and ivory colour scheme.

The concept here is you could stop by for a quick deli-style lunch, a glass of wine before the theatre, or linger over the longer dinner menu, which features.

Selections by the glass are limited (13 on the current list, plus specials), but there are plenty of options for the wine adventurer, from Greece, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and beyond.

From the autumn, monthly themed Wine Nights (Greece, Lebanon, Cabernet & kebabs, English sparkling wine for the holidays) will see four wines poured, with complementary small plates, for £45pp.

Don’t miss: the honey and feta cheesecake, paired with Samos Nectar.